Partner Article

Teesside jobs saved by Korean investment

More than half of the 250 jobs lost after the closure of a chemical firm on Teesside will return after the company was bought up by a Korean concern.

Artenius UK, which stopped operating in July, was rescued by KP Chemical Corporation, a UK-based subsidiary of Korean giant Lotte. All the assets of Artenius will be taken over by KP, including the PTA and PET manufacturing facilities at Wilton. The 41 workers still employed by Artenius will transfer to KP, who plan to create another 132 jobs at the site.

Daniel Butters, partner with administrators Deloitte, said: “We are delighted to have successfully signed the asset transfer agreement, which will secure the employment of the remaining workforce at Wilton as well as creating significant new employment opportunities in the local area.

“I believe the sale will also be a boost to the considerable number of stakeholders of AUK, both locally and globally, that are eager to see the PTA and PET businesses at Wilton survive.”

Artenius is the only UK producer of PTA, which is used to produce the PET food packaging material. The plant’s parent firm La Seda de Barcelona suffered financial difficulty in 2009, which led to the reduction in operations at Artenius.

Soo-Young Huh, CEO and President of KP Chemical Corporation said: “I am delighted that the asset transfer agreement has been successfully signed. We welcome the employees transferring from AUK into the Lotte family.

“The start up of this new business in as short a time as possible will be another significant challenge but I am confident that the team will achieve this, and I am eagerly anticipating watching the first product leave the site in early April.”

Ian Williams, Director of Business and Industry for One North East said: “This is a clear demonstration that the Wilton site remains an attractive world-class environment for business investors and I would like to welcome LCUK to the region and look forward to a long and productive partnership with the company.”

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Ruth Mitchell .